KELOWNA, B.C. — An aviation expert says determining what caused a fatal plane crash near Kelowna, B.C., will be especially difficult because the aircraft didn't have flight recording devices.

Investigators will be working with very limited information as they probe why a small Cessna jet crashed shortly after take off late Thursday, said Jurek Sasiadek, a professor of aerospace engineering at Carleton University in Ottawa.

Former Alberta premier Jim Prentice was among the four people on board the plane who were killed.

"So it will take a long time to figure out, I guess, what happened, if it's ever possible.''

The Transportation Safety Board has said the plane disappeared from radar shortly after it took off and no emergency calls or signals were made before the crash.

The aircraft, which was built in 1974, was completely destroyed and there was a fire after the crash.

Debris from the plane crash. (Photo: TSB)

That will make investigators' jobs increasingly tough, Sasiadek said, because it appears there aren't any large pieces of the plane left to look at for clues.

"In this case, there was no communication, there's no black box to rely on and the aircraft disintegrated almost completely,'' he said. "So it will take a long time to figure out, I guess, what happened, if it's ever possible.''

Cockpit voice recorders and flight data recorders, also known as black boxes, collect all of the details of a flight, Sasiadek explained.

"For example, if the engine fails, there will be information that the power failed, so that's how you can learn during the investigation,'' he said.

Lead crash investigator Beverley Harvey has said recording equipment was not required on the Cessna Citation.

Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge Beverley Harvey, left, describes details from the plane crash that killed former Alberta Premier Jim Prentice and three others Thursday night near Winfield, B.C., as senior investigator Jean-Pierre Regnier looks on during a press conference in Lake Country, B.C., on Saturday, October 15, 2016. (Photo: The Canadian Press/Desmond Murray)

Transport Canada said in a statement that on small aircraft, the decision to install flight recorder equipment is at the pilot's discretion because there generally aren't any cockpit conversations to record and the plane's air traffic transmissions are recorded by NAV Canada.

The Transportation Safety Board made a recommendation in 2013 that Transport Canada move to require recording equipment on lightweight aircraft.

The advisory came after a float plane broke up mid-flight in a remote part of Yukon in March 2011, killing the one person on board.

Recordings from downed aircraft could "provide useful information to enhance the identification of safety deficiencies,'' the TSB recommendation said.

Jim Prentice speaks during a campaign stop in Edmonton on Tuesday April 14, 2015. Former Alberta premier Prentice died Thursday in a plane crash outside of Kelowna, British Columbia. (Photo: The Canadian Press/Jason Franson)

"No effort should be spared'' in changing the rules to require the devices on small planes, the recommendation added.

Transport Canada could not immediately indicate Sunday how it responded to the Transportation Safety Board recommendation.

A moment of silence was held prior to the start of the Edmonton Oilers' regular season home game against the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday night at Rogers Place to honour Prentice.

— By Gemma Karsten Smith in Vancouver and Nicole Thompson in Toronto

With files from Ryan McKenna in Toronto

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Shakeups Jim Prentice Made As Alberta Premier

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When he was sworn in as Alberta's 16th premier on Sept. 16, 2014, Jim Prentice said the province was "under new management."
Here's a look at some of the biggest shakeups he made.

Just days after he was sworn in as premier, Prentice announced he had taken the unusual step of reaching outside his government caucus to name two unelected civilians to fill the key cabinet posts of health and education.

The first decision of his new cabinet was to sell the four-plane fleet that had become a public relations millstone around the neck of the previous Alberta Progressive Conservative government.

Any talk of new Alberta licence plates was silenced on Sept. 18 2014 when Prentice announced the Alberta government will cancel any further work on the designs.

On Sept. 23, 2014, Prentice ordered a sweeping review to fix concerns in rural health care.
"Many rural communities face daunting challenges, particularly when it comes to health care. Challenges such as recruiting and retaining health care professionals and frontline workers, having to travel long distances for care for our citizens, and the need to co-ordinate services and facilities among neighbouring communities," he said.

On Sept. 24, 2014, Prentice unveiled details to be included in a bill that will tabled in the legislature this fall to end entitlements.
He said he will not only put an end to blatant political appointments, he will also go back and review appointments already made. Prentice said everyone his cabinet picks to sit on a board or agency must be the best person for the job, regardless of their present or past political affiliation.

In late September, Prentice drove a stake through Alison Redford's "Building Alberta" branding campaign. "You know, 300 signs staked out in the ground isn't a good measure of performance — and you're not going to see my name on any signs," Prentice said.

On Oct. 14, 2014, Prentice said the province is embarking on a new plan to get 700 seniors out of overcrowded hospitals and into proper care facilities. He said the province will redirect existing resources over the next year to free up 464 continuing care spaces for seniors.

On Oct. 8, 2014, Prentice said the province will build 55 new schools across the province and modernize 20 more.

On Oct. 1, 2014, Prentice said Albertans pay too much for residential electricity and he plans to do something about it.
According to the Calgary Herald, Prentice said Albertans "need consumer pricing of electricity in this province that is affordable, that’s predictable and where we have rate options that people understand.
“Clearly, the way the deregulated system has been functioning, we have been paying more for our electricity in my view than we should be, and that’s something I am taking a closer look at.”